Sam Darnold suffers hip injury on Seahawks' opening drive. Fracture ruled out but more tests needed

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SEATTLE (AP) — Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold suffered a hip injury that knocked him out of Seattle's season opener against the New England Patriots on Wednesday night, a potentially significant blow to the Super Bowl champions' title defense.

Coach Mike Macdonald said Darnold didn't break any bones while adding that more tests were needed.

Darnold was sacked on Seattle's first series by Dre'Mont Jones, and the quarterback's right leg appeared to take the brunt of the impact as Jones drove him to the turf. Darnold limped off the field, was examined in the sideline medical tent and then limped to the locker room.

The Seahawks initially said Darnold was questionable, then announced before halftime that he would not return. Backup Drew Lock replaced him and went 16 of 22 for 187 yards and a touchdown as the Seahawks rallied for a 13-10 victory.

“At this point we were able to rule out a fracture,” Macdonald said, calling the initial diagnosis “positive.”

Darnold's injury was a deflating early moment for Seattle in the rematch of last season's Super Bowl, in which the Seahawks beat the Patriots 29-13.

“I feel like I know Sam really well. He was going to do everything he can to stay out there, but it’s just one of those things where he had to go get looked at,” Lock said.

Darnold, 29, did not miss a game last season as he led the Seahawks to the title. He threw for 4,048 yards with 25 touchdowns and 14 interceptions in the regular season as Seattle won a franchise-record 14 games.

It was his first season with the Seahawks after reviving his career with the Vikings in 2024, when he threw for 4,319 yards and 35 touchdowns.

Drafted third overall in the 2018 draft out of Southern California by the Jets, Darnold had a 13-25 record and a 78.6 passer rating over his initial three seasons for New York. He also played for Carolina and was the backup to Brock Purdy in San Francisco.

Darnold was 1 of 2 for 13 yards against New England before he left. The Seahawks fell behind 7-0 at halftime, but Lock started to play better in the second half.

“It was great to to get in here at half, put the plays up on the board, talk about our openers coming out of the half, really get those dialed in,” Lock said. “I think it’s also a little bit of the just feeling the flow of the game, getting back into this, finding ways to in the future be able to snap into it quicker. That’s just the life of a backup.”

Down 10-3 in the fourth quarter, Lock hit Jaxon Smith-Njigba on fourth-and-1, and the star receiver dashed to the end zone for a 45-yard touchdown.

“It’s tough losing (Darnold). I mean, he’s the head of the snake, but we have each other’s backs,” Smith-Njigba said. “We fully trust in Drew Lock to come in and do his thing, done it time and time again. So we just have to have each other’s backs.”

Lock, 29, has spent two stints with the Seahawks. He was with Seattle from 2022-23, then spent a season with the New York Giants before returning.

He played only in mop-up duty last season, completing two passes for 15 yards in five games.

Lock, a second-round pick out of Missouri by the Broncos, started for Denver in 2020, throwing for 2,933 yards with 16 touchdowns and 15 interceptions.

“In the moment, I mean, you’re hurting for Sam, obviously,” receiver Cooper Kupp said. “But in the moment, you got to find ways to move forward and figure out how to go out there and win a football game.”

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